Sleeping With the Enemy
by trisanamcgraw
Summary: Series of ficlets from Megabyte's POV during My Two Bobs.
1. It was the perfect plan - Prologue

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It was the perfect plan.

I don't know how long I drifted through the Web, motionless; the wheels in my head still turning, circling in disbelief around why I had been booted out of my system, defeated in my conquest.

Oh, the agony; the slow, burning pain that circled around me and twisted into my bruised bones. It scorched my skin and made me cry out until my throat was hoarse, and my voice nearly gone.

I was alone in the Web; there was no one else. I suffered by myself. Every second I cursed the sprites that had damned me to this Web, until I lost count of the seconds I drifted alone.

At one point, I thought I had lost awareness. Blackness clouded my vision regularly, and soon I lost feeling. Then, one second in the unknown amount of time I had spent here, I felt something strike my back, then I settled. I was splayed out on a hard, iron surface.

Twisted, unfamiliar faces appeared above my head. They spoke in a strange, clicking language that I could not understand. Soon, they lifted me up and carried me away.

More nightmares haunted me, until I awoke in the Web Riders' base. They had taken care of me, and helped me regain my strength. They were kind to me, and I knew I should reward them. I would give them the highest ranks in my new infection.

When a Rider came to check on me, I leapt up, my energy refreshed, and infected the deformed sprite. I was surprised and pleased to find that, though my skin had been mutated, it was five times tougher, and my claws had grown fully from my knuckles. I speared the sprite with my stronger knuckles and let my infection ravage his code. When the next Rider entered, I performed the same motions.

I made my way through the base, taking all the Riders under my control and deleting a few for good measure. As the last sprite bowed to my hand, I admired my renewed power. If I had had this strength and these new skills, I would have enjoyed deleting those sprites, slowly and agonizingly — but especially Bob.

As I watched, the hand with the dark, leathery skin and jagged claws shifted and changed, until I found myself staring at a smooth, soft, pale blue hand belonging to a sprite. I tried to scream, but the surprised cry emerged in the light voice of a sprite — of Bob!

I rushed to the window and gazed aghast at my reflection. Bob stood before me, and there was no doubt it wasn't him: the silver hair, the pale skin, the Guardian uniform. What was going on here? I wondered anxiously. I had just been thinking about deleting Bob, and suddenly —

I squeezed my eyes shut. Anxiously, I cleared my mind, then filled it with thoughts of me, Megabyte. I reopened my eyes and found my own face staring back at me from the glass. I sighed in relief; but once my initial shock had faded, my mind began to coldly calculate this new discovery.

Could I have somehow developed an ability beyond my normal viral powers? From what I had just experienced, I might be able to — shift my form. I brought thoughts of Bob back to my mind, and again I was he.

Rather than change back, I studied myself in this form. I looked just like Bob, before I had shot him into the Web. The real Bob was different now — more ragged-looking, and he wore some sort of silver suit — but I was still him. I looked just like Bob.

The thought made me laugh out loud like I hadn't in a long time. Instantly, I knew what I could do with this ability. It was the perfect plan; return to Mainframe and plot my enemies' demise. 

When the Web Surfr, whom I had never met before and I wasn't sure if Bob had either, appeared at the Web Riders' base, I had to act surprised and uncertain of what was going on. I had rehearsed my story with my slaves several times; and they were infected, so they acted just as I told them to. I told the Surfr that I had awoken here, in this base, with no memory of anything past the Web World War against Megabyte. He must have been too surprised to argue, and he took me with him, back to Mainframe. 

  
On the way, the Surfr asked me if I remembered anything, if I knew who he was or anyone else he mentioned. Of course I "remembered" the other sprites in Mainframe; but I knew nothing of the one he mentioned, Daemon. As we flew towards Mainframe -- I, the perfect Trojan Horse -- I saw red lights flash past us, and I could have sworn I heard my sister's insane cackling. What a strange thing to think.

I arrived in Mainframe at just the right time, and I saw the perfect situation there. I knew that, with all the confusion going on after this Daemon person, my plan could come into action. I would insinuate myself into their lives and cause mass chaos. Once I had gained their trust, I would rip their lives away from them and regain my place as leader of Megaframe. The sprites that had pushed me into the Web would pay, and my revenge would taste sweet.

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It was the perfect plan.


	2. Reunion and recovery - Introductions

I looked around at the surprised faces staring back at me. And well they _should _be surprised. I was here to ruin their peace.

There were some I didn't recognize — a woman with blue hair and a null that looked just like Nibbles, and — _Enzo Matrix_? But I had just seen him, older; he stood beside the blue-haired woman. There were _two _of him? What in the Net had I missed since I had been pushed out of Mainframe?

Ms. Matrix was kneeling by the Guardian, but she stood up when I came toward her, her mouth hanging open in shock and disbelief.

And Bob — he was staring at me as if he knew what I was beneath. Then the look passed, and he simply looked confused like the rest of them. He looked nervous.

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That's right, I thought. _Wonder what's happening. Worry over how and why I'm here. Doubt that you are real, when I am standing right in front of you._

Then Bob gave a weak moan and fell back. He was flickering wildly, barely there, in fact. Everyone looked away from me to him, and Dot dropped to his side again and cradled his head. Matrix and the woman called the hospital, and suddenly there was movement around me, and I was being rushed to the hospital with the sprites.

I wondered what could have happened before my arrival as Bob as to make the real Guardian nearly-deleted. I wondered: Could he delete now, and steal from me the chance to inflict deletion on him myself? I hoped not; I could not let my scheme go awry before it had barely started. 

Phong explained to me that Bob was suffering from after-effects of merging with his keytool — the others must not have known, from the expressions of horror that passed over their faces — and he was in dire need of an energy transfusion.

Immediately, the Matrix boy — the larger one — volunteered, and the doctor began to set up the machine. The rest of us stepped aside and watched as Matrix sat down beside Bob's bed. As the energy transfusion took place, Dot's eyes grew wide with apprehension, and she turned toward me with a scared, desperate fear in her eyes. I held out my arm, and Dot hesitantly rested her head against my shoulder. Holding her against me, I watched without emotion as Bob's body slowly solidified. His breathing calmed, and soon his eyes closed in restful sleep.

Now that the worst was over, the doctor informed us that Bob would need to recover, which would take at least a second. We were asked to give Bob the time he would need. With a few glances back at the sleeping sprite, we exited the room.

Once we stood back in the Principle Office, all attention turned to me. They seemed to accept that I was somehow another Guardian Bob, but not the same as the one who was recovering in the hospital right now. I kept up my lie, letting them believe that I was Bob, but I didn't remember everything that had gone on.

"I can only remember the Web World Wars," I explained when they persisted in their questions. "Megabyte shot me into the Web, and –" I shrugged helplessly. "Then I woke up, and the Web Riders found me. Ray came and brought me here." Those naïve sprites – they believed all I said.

So, one by one, the sprites stepped forward and "introduced" themselves to me. Re-introductions were not necessary, but I kept silent, because I wanted to know what I had missed.

Dot was the first, and she approached me carefully. "Bob," she began, her voice quiet, "you remember me, right?"

"Dot," I started, and I surprised myself with the amount of gentleness in my voice. "Of course I know you."

Dot smiled broadly, and it seemed some of the worry lifted from her face. "I don't know how you came here," she told me, placing a hand on my arm, "but it can only be good." I smiled back, fighting the urge to laugh at Dot's words. _My visit is going to be far from good, Ms. Matrix._

Then the Matrix boy stepped up to me. I clenched my teeth hard as searing anger surged through my body. I had to restrain myself from reaching out and choking the air from him, tearing out his core-com with my claws.

But I didn't have claws, or any of my super-strength or speed. I was Bob. I was the Guardian, and I would play the part – for now.

I noted that he looked nervous, scared, almost. I wanted to laugh, but I was also disgusted. Where was the arrogant sprite who had beaten me to the ground?

"Bob?" he said hesitantly. "Do you – recognize me? It's me – Enzo."

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Of course I know you, you son of a null. I spent all my time in the Web hating you, exacting my revenge; how I would beat you until you were reduced to nothing –

I widened my eyes in a look of shock. "Enzo? You've grown – I – It's good to see you."

Matrix swallowed and nodded. "It's good to see you too, Bob," he said somewhat gruffly, but his expression had lightened. Again I wondered: how could he fold so easily? But I knew that I had his trust.

Hack and Slash – those bumbling idiots, I thought with the urge to roll my eyes – bounded up to me, bumping against one another in their excitement.

"Hi, Bob," they said together, their mouthpieces flashing red and blue. I peered closely at them for a nano. They looked as if they had been patched up several times over, and – I was shocked to see that each `bot had its own icon.

"It's good to see you, Bob," Slash said.

"Even if there is another Bob already," Hack added.

"Well, two Bobs is better than one Megabyte," Slash said. 

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Indeed? I thought, retaining my façade as Bob. I would keep a special punishment for these two when I rose to power again.

Hack gasped and clapped a hand over Slash's mouthpiece. "What did I tell you about not saying that name?" he snapped.

"What – Mega –" The rest of Slash's words were cut off. He indignantly shoved Hack away, and they scuffled together.

A lavender hand grasped my own and Mouse shook my hand firmly. "Good ta have you back, Sugah," she said, although her expression still looked troubled. "Quite the seconds we've been having," she added with a wry grin. 

Seeing these sprites made my energy burn again. I hated each and every one of these Mainframers, and now I wanted, more than ever, to ruin their lives.

"That's Ray," Mouse added, tossing her head back at the Surfr, who hadn't said a word. "We met him during the battle against Megabyte and Hexadecimal, and he's helped us out."

A young woman approached me, smiling. "Bob – you wouldn't really remember me, because I didn't know you as long before the war. I'm AndrAIa, Enzo's friend." I had glimpsed the girl during the final battle for Mainframe – throwing her trident to the boy – and she was a Game sprite, I remembered. She looked just like – the boy's friend! I remembered seeing her with Enzo, and when they had lost the Game.

I nodded, glad for the excuse to not fully remember. AndrAIa smiled again and hugged me. She walked back to Matrix and put her arm around his waist.

"Hello, my son," Phong greeted me gravely. "It is good to see you here, Bob."

"Good to see you too," I returned, shaking his spindly hand. _So thin and frail, easy to break –_

Almost all of the sprites had reintroduced themselves to me, but there was still one I hadn't yet spoken to. Little Enzo Matrix, who had hung back and stared at the flickering Bob with wide, terrified eyes, now stared at me with uncertainty.

"Enzo, it's Bob," Dot said, pushing the boy forward.

And, indeed, I wanted to "meet" Enzo and figure out why there were suddenly two of him. Or, had he been there all along, but was hidden away during the fighting? No, that couldn't be right. I'd watched him go into a Game, and that Game had left, with the User the victor. Besides, I noticed, this Enzo didn't look like the boy had during the war. He was somewhat younger than the Guardian cadet and he still possessed some naïve innocence.

Dot noticed my confusion. "When the User rebooted the system" – Rebooted? How? I wondered – "Matrix's icon was in Game sprite mode, and the system accidentally brought back Enzo." She smiled down at her brother and placed her hands on his shoulders.

Enzo looked up at me and smiled. "I'm glad you're here, Bob," he said. I smiled back, beginning to feel nauseous from this sweet little reunion.

Those were all the sprites, save Bob who rested in the hospital. They took me back to the Diner for energy shakes, and all was peaceful. 

I was as much a part of this group as I could ever be. They all trusted me because they believed I was one of their own.

Over the next second, we each visited the Principle Office a few times. Then, the waiting was over. The doctor announced that Bob had a clean bill of health and would be released a second and a half after he had first come to the hospital. We helped Bob out, all congratulating him on his recovery, and we returned to Dot's Diner.

As we sat in two booths, the others clapped Bob on the back or hugged him. When it was my turn, I simply said, "Welcome back, Bob" and held out my hand. Bob cautiously shook it; he must still have been suspicious of me, and I wouldn't blame him. He gripped my hand several nanoseconds longer and stared hard at first my hand, then at me. But the others' trust must have swayed him, because he just nodded and let go.

The second was reaching downtime, and we all went our separate ways. Phong, Matrix, and AndrAIa headed for the Principle Office. Dot and Enzo turned toward Baudway. Ray and Mouse disappeared to the docks. After some contemplation, Dot sent me to Bob's apartment with him.

We zipped over there in silence; Bob opted not to demonstrate his Glitch powers, as his code was slowly mending. Once we got inside, he showed me a guestroom and left me to sleep.

As I tried to sleep that night, I could hear Bob's breathing from his room down the hall. The ache for revenge gnawed at my insides and twisted in my chest. I desired so much to sneak in on him as he slept, and wring his pitiful neck. I could delete him before he could open a VidWindow for help.

But revenge wasn't going to be that easy. After everything these sprites had done to me, there was no way I would let them off easy. I would embed the knife and twist it slowly, over a matter of seconds or even cycles. I would torture them, slowly, agonizingly, and I would enjoy every nano of it.

I turned myself away from the door and stared at the wall beside the bed. It would be quite an interesting experience to be Bob. I had only been myself for all my processing, never pretended to be another. This new talent was proving to be most entertaining.

I slept soundly that night.


	3. "My Two Bobs" - Insinuation

The first thing I noticed over the next few seconds was that everyone seemed happy. It was quite a change from the grim, hard-faced sprites I had fought against during the Web World War. It seemed to me as if they were all trying to fit back into their lives. Well, not that they all really fit. The larger Matrix, for instance, seemed rather out of place in the more peaceful Mainframe, as did his friend AndrAIa. And also, Bob also wore a look of unease as he gazed at his surroundings.

When I woke up one morning three seconds after I had appeared in Mainframe, Bob wasn't at his apartment. That actually made it easier for me to sit and think through my plan. How to, on this second, begin to work my way into their lives, to be a part of their everyday routine?

I headed toward the Diner, where most of the sprites were, actually. It seemed quite the "hangout," though I myself had never set foot inside the building. I was impressed with how bustling Ms. Matrix's business was, as I saw the binomes who sat in booths or ordered energy shakes from the bar.

  
Just as I was entering, Dot opened the door and bumped into me. "Hi, Dot," I started to say. I was about to invite her to lunch so we could talk and I could strengthen her faith in me and not Bob.

But before I could continue, Ms. Matrix waved a hand and said, "Sorry, Bob, but I -- I've got to go to the Principle Office. I'm supposed to be meeting Phong." She smiled apologetically and rushed past me. Watching her retreating figure, I noted that she looked rather stressed. No doubt my arrival was troubling her to no end.

I sat down across from Bob in a booth. We regarded each other in silence for several nanoseconds, neither knowing what to say or where to start. I wondered if he would speak first.

Though I had noted several sprites inside the Diner, not everyone was there. For one, Mouse and Ray Tracer had left the system almost immediately after my arrival. Mouse had promised to update Dot with information on the conditions of other systems. I wondered what she was talking about, and why she mentioned Hexadecimal briefly. No one explained this in full to me, however, and Mouse and Tracer left in her ship.

Matrix wasn't in the Diner, either. A few milliseconds after I had entered, AndrAIa passed us, asking if we had seen her significant other. I had no idea, but Bob told her that he had seen Matrix and a squad of CPUs head toward Lost Angles; the renegade had been talking about training. At this, AndrAIa groaned and rolled her eyes as if she understood exactly what was going on. With a quick good-bye, she hurried out of the Diner.

Bob and I laughed at the situation, but soon our chuckles died down as we stared once again at each other, alone again.

He tried to treat me like he would another sprite so as to lighten the tenseness of the situation; he even joked around. But still he pressed me for questions of my origin. I kept up my pretense: "All I remember is Megabyte shooting me into the Web." While I spoke, I was able to slowly begin to plant the seeds of suspicion in his mind.

We'd already determined that one of us was a "copy," but Bob seemed sure that it was I. I wouldn't blame him, since he had lived the whole hour in the Web and come back to save Mainframe. But I couldn't let him think he was the real Bob. I saw the uncertainty flash across Bob's face when I countered, "What makes you think I'm the copy?" and then "Copies can have memories." He fumbled for an answer, and I knew that his faith in his own validity was slipping. I persisted, even taking a low blow, but I wanted Bob to lose belief in himself. Already, one piece of my plan was in motion.

Enzo came into the Diner then. I wanted to bring him over to my side, but I could tell that he would cling fast to Bob, his belief in his hero was so strong. Then, one of those blasted Games fell, cutting off anything I might have said.

Matrix and AndrAIa met us as we zipped toward the Game cube as fast as we could. What a wonderful little group we made, I couldn't help but think sarcastically.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Dot turn down Bob's request to go into the Game. I could barely hide my glee when she ordered me to go in with Matrix; it gave me the perfect chance. As we zipped away, I caught a glance of Bob's unhappy face; some jealousy, confusion, and mostly betrayal were clearly written on his features.

I had thought that the larger Enzo Matrix had changed, but apparently, he was still that annoying little boy. _What was he doing?_ I wondered several times, watching him jab at the air and flex his muscles while explaining the Game to me. I couldn't believe it; he seemed a little _too_ excited to be playing the Game. I stared silently at him and waited for him to stop lunging at my face.

I hoped I wasn't acting too clueless, granted that I'd only been in a few Games, and I hadn't ever paid attention to the rules. Matrix didn't notice when I misunderstood something, but I cursed myself inwardly every time I stupidly questioned a Game rule that the real Bob probably knew.

What a horrible little Game, I thought once I had rebooted into that tiny, airless space. At least in the Web there had been open room to move. Here, in this tiny ball, I felt trapped. I don't enjoy feeling trapped.

I pulled my thoughts back toward the Game. How could Bob have played these things? How could Matrix, for that matter, with his small supply of patience?

I heard someone announce "Final Level" and the sound of the User approaching the temple in which we stood. That incessant dog was panting next to me, and it was slowly wearing my patience thin. How many times did he have to squeak his own name, "Frisket," aloud?

I couldn't hear much besides muffled shouting, and I wondered what in the Net was going on. I hoped the boy knew what he was doing. Of course, he must have, to have survived the Games for however long he had.

Finally, I was free from the prison I had been contained in -- and I was a monster? I stared down at myself in bewilderment. _I might as well play along,_ I thought wearily. But this was by far the strangest Game I had ever seen. It was even stranger than the Game in which the dinosaurs were created out of machinery parts.

Suddenly, the User's creatures began to strike at me, and I tried to knock them away. Matrix shouted at me to use my "Atomic Nostril Blast." _What in the Net?_ I did as he said, and I drove back two of the creatures. The third sneaked up behind me, but I used my other . . . interesting power on it. 

Barely a moment after I had beaten those three, more creatures attacked me, striking me with lighting bolts and blasts of fire. And the boy wouldn't even help me! I knew this was going to be an exhausting Game.

I was slowly becoming infuriated with this annoyance. While I was being attacked, Matrix did nothing to help. I began to think: Maybe I had misjudged him at the fight for Mainframe; maybe he wasn't as tough as he seemed. He kept screaming to me about the rules, acting just like Enzo would. For the User's sake!

I shouted at him to help me. He yelled back, "I can't!"

I told him, "There must be something you can do."

"No!" he retorted. "The rules are clear!"

Part of me wanted to flatten him beneath my foot, but I quelled that part. "You're a renegade!" I shouted. "_Cheat_!" Seriously, where was the boy's processor? Why didn't he just think about this?

Then, as if a grace from the User, the realization dawned on his face. "Oh, _right_."

I decided not to argue and to just let the boy do his job. Sure enough, he quickly punched the User and beat him to the ground. Even that wasn't enough to beat the User, so I finally squashed him under my foot. What a relief to win this Game the _correct_ way: with brutal force. Hmm. In a way, Matrix and I had some similarities. Interesting, I had to admit.

Finally, we heard the merciful "GAME OVER." It seemed that that infuriating Game had been good for something. Matrix and I bonded somehow while playing. All I knew was that he did trust me as Bob; he really believed I was his childhood hero. When we won the Game, he seemed happier than I'd have thought he was capable of acting. And when I made that mistake of calling him "Enzo," he was almost at ease with the name that I had seen him flinch at a second ago. Then a stony expression quickly covered that brief thoughtfulness when I tried to again act like Bob. I asked, "Fancy a game of jetball?" to which he grumpily answered, "No." Still, I had made some progress with one sprite.

I couldn't help but smile as we headed our separate ways; he to the Diner, I back to Bob's apartment. The Matrix boy hadn't changed that much from the naïve child who had tried to fight against me. The appearance of his childhood hero was overcoming his usual barriers and letting him trust me.

As I opened the door, I considered who next I could sway. Perhaps little Enzo, if he would react as easily as his counterpart. I wondered how strong his faith in the real Bob would be, however. AndrAIa, the Game sprite, would be harder to convince; she seemed to know the "Glitch" Bob better than the "original." Of course, she was close to Matrix, so maybe he could convince her.

"Phase One" had been successful: Bob was already uncertain about my arrival, and Matrix had accepted me as Bob. I strolled happily into the Guardian's apartment building and settled on the couch. That annoying talking television wasn't present -- thank the User, or I may have snapped his antennae -- so I instead turned on the inanimate set.

As the newest Mainframe News Report appeared on the screen, I leaned forward interestedly. What was this about disgruntled former virals in Mainframe?


	4. "Life's A Glitch" - Familiarity

Ms. Matrix continued to evade me. I wondered why. Every time I tried to talk to her, she would slip away or find some excuse, like work. Was Dot always like that?

Lately, she had been spending her time with that old sprite Phong in the Principle Office. I had noticed, when they first showed me around the Principle Office, that for some reason they held Nibbles in a cage. I had been surprised to see my pet null, but I hadn't said anything. The two Enzos, Dot, and Phong spoke to Nibbles at times, calling him "Welman."

I, meanwhile, was at Dot's Diner for the umpteenth time in only a few seconds. It seemed rather the hangout, as the sprites were almost always there or at the Principle Office. It was on one normal second that I was enjoying lunch with "my" friends — Bob's friends, precisely. Matrix, AndrAIa, and Enzo were all happy to have me back. The four of us sat in a booth, talking over what had happened to us. We hadn't been served yet by the one waiter who was taking orders from other sprites; what rude service, I thought scornfully.

I didn't speak very much to the others. Rather, I let them update me on the current happenings in the Net and the Web. It seemed that they had endured quite a lot since my departure from Mainframe and the system crash that they had somehow emerged from.

I had heard the name of some person, "Daemon," mentioned several times in the last few seconds. Now I spoke up. "Who's Daemon, and why do you keep talking about her?" I asked.

The others traded glances. Then Matrix explained, "She was a super-virus. She took over the Supercomputer and infected almost all of the Guardians while AndrAIa and I were in the Games."

I was lucky that I wasn't holding an energy shake at the moment, or I may have dropped it in my shock. I felt my eyes widen and my jaw drop. How could another virus have taken over _my_ domain? _I_ was supposed to rule the Supercomputer and bring all those miserable sprites under my control!

Matrix mistook my reaction for the surprise and horror one would expect from Bob, while I was actually seething with rage beneath the Guardian's skin. "Oh, don't worry," he assured me. "Daemon didn't infect me or Gli — or Bob. We fought her in the Net and in Mainframe, but we won in the end."

That offered something of a relief. The Supercomputer was back open for my inevitable takeover. Feeling better but still anxious to find out information about the one who had almost taken my place in rule, I asked, "What was Daemon like?"

"She lulled us into a kind of peace with her infection," AndrAIa replied. "It was almost . . . relaxing," she added, looking thoughtful. AndrAIa went on to explain about how, having been infected first, she knew about Daemon. When she told me what Daemon looked like, I wanted to laugh out loud at the description of such a powerful virus.

But while I scoffed at the late super-virus, a boiling rage was still bubbling up inside me. How could a little-girl virus with the power to relax sprites have taken over what was rightfully _my_ domain?

I fought to remain in control of my emotions, to act Bob-like. "So what happened to Daemon?" I asked, keeping my tone light.

"It was really weird," Enzo said. "She came to Mainframe and she infected everybody — well, except for me, `cause I was in a Game, and I was able to save us all." He beamed proudly, and AndrAIa tousled his hair affectionately. "But then, Daemon self-destructed, and her infection went _all over_ the Net! She was about to kill us all," Enzo went on, his voice growing more excited by the nano. "And _then_, Hexadecimal did the _coolest_ thing!"

"What did Hexadecimal do?" I asked. By now, I had realized that I hadn't seen her, not even once, since I had come out of the portal. I had thought that she would have welcomed another Bob. Hmm, maybe she hadn't known about my arrival.

"Well," Matrix said slowly, "she sacrificed herself." There was a brief note of admiration in his voice, though his tone was mostly curt. "First, there was this big fight between her and Daemon. They tore up the whole city with their powers. Then Daemon just self-destructed. Hex defragmented when going through a portal, and she sent her infection around the Net. Somehow, it stopped Daemon's from deleting everyone, just in time."

I pondered this in silence that I knew stretched a little too long. My sister was gone, deleted. She'd been my other half — although insane, she was the perfect contrast to my order.

Pity — I'd wanted to delete her myself.

I shook my head. "Really? And what else happened?"

"That was all," Enzo said. "Then you came to Mainframe." He gave me a huge smile, and it was easy to see that I was winning him over. I couldn't help but smile back.

"I'm getting kind of thirsty," AndrAIa said. She sighed. "Is Cecil ever going to serve us?"

I raised my hand and called, "Cecil, a drink." But, as had happened when I had been with Bob last second, the server ignored us. I shook my head in puzzlement.

"Bob," AndrAIa giggled, "you know he's never going to serve _you_."

"Uh — right," I said, quickly putting my arm down. "I knew that."

"Let me give it a shot," Matrix suggested. He pointed a finger at Cecil. "Hey, Cecil — four energy shakes for the table." The waiter had the nerve to turn away and continue polishing a glass.

"Cecil," Matrix repeated, the tone of his voice growing dangerous. I could literally see his small amount of patience fraying to the point of non-existence. "I said, four energy shakes for the table."

Now, the server gave a small snort and turned away. Matrix sprang up from the table. "Cecil, I demand some service here! This is a diner, for User's sake!"

I couldn't help but admire Cecil. He muttered something that I doubted was a compliment in another language. We all picked up on the meaning of what he said, and Matrix's mechanical eye glowed bright red.

"That is it!" Matrix shouted, slamming his hands down on the table so that it shook. We all jumped back, startled. "This is a diner! Why don't we get any service?"

AndrAIa touched his arm, but Matrix shook her off. "Enzo, stop it," she hissed in irritation.

Cecil laughed at AndrAIa scolding Matrix. At this, the renegade whipped out his Gun and lunged at the waiter. Cecil let out a shriek and hurried backwards along his cable.

We couldn't help but laugh at the scene, but AndrAIa continued to call, "Enzo, calm down!" She finally gave up and turned a helpless stare on Enzo and me. I kept laughing, but now Enzo had turned his attention to a camera crew outside and was making faces against the window.

I looked back to where Matrix was still chasing Cecil behind the bar, waving his Gun around. Cecil flung his dishcloth at Matrix, but that only served to spike the large sprite's temper even more. They kept running in a circle around the bar.

I finally laid my head on my arms, acting exasperated but inwardly still chuckling. I was discovering, second by second, that these sprites had many layers to their codes. They could be battle-hardened heroes as well as wacky inhabitants of a charming little system.

Life in Mainframe was certainly interesting.

Another blasted Game was falling in Kits Sector! I wouldn't have minded the experience too much, but then the annoying duo of `bots accompanied us -- _and_ Phong, holding some strange device. 

Matrix's reaction was similar to the one I would have liked to express: irritation at the thought of more inexperienced sprites joining in with the Game. AndrAIa, however, tried to calm him. I myself rolled my eyes and kept silent in Bob-fashion. But I pondered what would happen with this unlikely little group, in an unpredictable Game.

I also wondered why the real Bob hadn't come with us. I had figured out that he couldn't reboot, as there was a problem with his icon. Still, why hadn't he come to at least see his friends into the Game?

I hadn't seen Bob the whole morning in fact. By now, I imagined that he was avoiding me; I was getting used to life in Mainframe, and he was becoming increasingly agitated with my existence in his home.

We stood in a most interesting Game now. Our surroundings were a larger-than-life User room, with huge, unfeasible appliances towering over us like giants. I asked Matrix if he'd played this Game, and he replied that he hadn't.

When AndrAIa mentioned that there was fighting going on, we all ran to the window to see outside. But before we could even reboot, Little Enzo rushed toward us, having just made it under the Game.

Suddenly, the User, a huge raccoon with eyes that swirled with red, slammed against the window and slid down the side. Matrix and AndrAIa both sprang back as if they'd seen a ghost.

"Oh no!" AndrAIa cried.

"Not him again," Matrix growled right after her.

I asked again if they had played this Game. Matrix explained, "Not this version; the User must have upgraded. But we have met the User: Rocky the Rabid Raccoon." Just the name made our opponent sound not only very intriguing, but also tough to deal with.

As always, Enzo leapt right into things, rebooting before we had even figured out what our goal was. As we all additionally rebooted into our characters, I noticed Matrix's resignation at the idea of playing this Game. I wondered: What had happened to the enthusiastic little boy, to make him so reluctant to participate in what he had always loved?

I shook off the thought and measured my Game character. I had rebooted into a sprite wearing dark fatigues, with a hard helmet on my head as well. The skin on my face and hands seemed unusually shiny when I inspected them. I reached for any weapons at my side, only to find that my hands hung loosely on wrist joints, and my fingers had been frozen into permanent fists.

I had no time to dwell further on my appearance. Rocky leapt into the kitchen through a door flap, muttering to himself about food. Matrix and AndrAIa explained to me that Rocky needed to find special coins in order to power up. We had to delete him three times, and more than that if he gained lives.

Luckily, we were ready for him. Matrix and I jumped off the counter and landed on the edge of a trash can, sending the lid bouncing upwards, which in turn set off another appliance. What followed was a bizarre but well-planned chain of events, like a gag waiting to happen, which concluded with knocking Rocky out the door. We cheered as we saw his first life float away.

While AndrAIa and Phong hurried off to sample Game codes from the edges of the cube, Matrix and I pelted the User with whatever we had at our disposal. We scored a few hits, but we were merely slowing him down. Rocky kept heading toward the coins he needed, while Hack and Slash and the boy stood off to the side, of no help.

I was rapidly growing frustrated with this process. It seemed that there was nothing we could do to stop the User; Rocky was too energized to be stopped. What with the way he bounced around in a hyperactive manner, we were barely able to target him, let alone toss those huge kitchen items at him.

Then, before our very eyes, Little Enzo proved that he actually had some skill in Game-playing. By now, Rocky had jumped onto a chair and was trying to climb onto the table. Matrix and I were too far away and too winded to even attempt to deter him. As we watched helplessly, Enzo sped by, propelled by the two soda cans that were Hack and Slash. He whizzed and jerked and spun around the room, until finally he slammed full-force into Rocky and pushed him out through the door flap.

Rocky had one life left, but he was already at the cookie jar, reaching for the shining coins that floated just overhead. If he got those coins, we would be hard-pressed to fight him, with the second and third and even fourth life he could gain from those coins.

I tried unsuccessfully to force him away from the cookie jar, stabbing in front of me with a meager weapon that I could barely hold. But I knew that I barely posed a threat to the creature. AndrAIa and Enzo were both knocking at the User's legs, trying to force him to the ground. Even Phong hopped up to help. He tripped and splattered a puddle of yogurt right in front of Rocky. But the User continued for the cookie jar. We were nothing more than gnats to the giant raccoon.

Suddenly, we heard a slow, measured thumping behind us, striking the table. We all turned and saw Matrix standing on top of a huge, headless roasted chicken. He was somehow controlling it, using it to advance toward Rocky.

Matrix's "chicken-walker" landed a huge blow on Rocky's knee, sending him sprawling. He fell back several steps and slipped onto his back. Unfortunately, Rocky slid right to the base of the cookie jar. He looked up at the shimmering coins, his eyes gleaming hungrily. Enzo and I hurried toward him, but we slipped in the yogurt and fell. I could barely push myself up with those horrible, useless hands I had rebooted with. Plus, every time I managed to regain my footing, I slipped again.

We watched in horror as Rocky pulled off the lid of the cookie jar to reveal a pile of shining gold coins. He flung the lid backhandedly toward AndrAIa, who ducked. The lid missed her, but Rocky was already reaching for a coin, licking his chops and grinning wildly.

He threw the coin into the air. We all watched, horrified, as it twirled in a spiral too slow to be humanly possible, toward his gaping mouth. It spun end over end, so slowly –

Suddenly, we heard a noise. We all turned around to see AndrAIa fling her purse – an accessory that accompanied her Game character – at Rocky. By some grace of the User, it landed in his mouth and was lodged in his windpipe. He fell back, choking, and the coin clattered harmlessly to the table.

Matrix used his chicken-vehicle to butt Rocky off the table, but it made the purse slip out of Rocky's throat – it fell beside me, actually. We knew that Rocky would stop at nothing now to get the coin. I looked wildly for something to help us, and my gaze fell on Enzo and a bottle of hot sauce standing by the edge of the table. Without thinking, I intoned, "Luke, use the sauce."

Enzo turned toward me with a confused expression. "What?"

I had no idea what I was saying, but I let my character assume the role. "The sauce! The sauce!"

Enzo saw the bottle of hot sauce and understood. With all his might, he leapt at it and shoved it over the table. Rocky watched, his eyes slowly widening with realization, as the bottle turned end over end in the air and finally landed in his open mouth. He was unable to stop himself from reflexively gulping the sauce down, as his eyes grew redder and redder, until the whole bottle had been devoured by this hyperactive raccoon. He jumped up and immediately let loose a huge plume of flame. His features bulged to extreme proportions, and he clapped his hands over his snout, steam beginning to curl from his nose. Shaking with fright, he tried to run toward a water faucet in the corner. But before he had moved a step, he exploded in a great show of flame and smoke. His spirit shimmered through the ceiling, followed by two gracious words: 

"GAME OVER."

We were glad to have won the Game, and happier to congratulate Enzo on his great Game-playing. I told Enzo what a wonderful job he had done, and he beamed at my praise. AndrAIa and even Matrix had compliments for the little sprite. Then, an interesting thing happened: When Matrix complimented AndrAIa on her hairstyle in the Game, she lashed out: "What, you don't like it now?" Suddenly, she groaned and clutched her temples. When Matrix asked what was wrong, she said, "I don't know. But something's not right."

We suddenly noticed a portal hanging over the Principle Office, reflecting all of Mainframe. It writhed and stretched, as if trying to separate into two halves, then suddenly contracted into itself. As we watched, there was a huge explosion and a scream that chilled us, even me, to the bone. The portal blew up in black and gray light, shooting a dark figure from it.

"What in the Net?" Matrix shouted.

"It's Bob!" AndrAIa cried. "I heard him scream!"

We'd all heard his scream, and we'd seen his body, encased in a shell, hurtling toward the Principle Office's dome. We hurried as fast as we could to the top of the dome. Dot was already kneeling by Bob's encased figure when we approached. She turned around when we approached, and her eyes were filled with terror. Yet, she still maintained the calm front I had always seen in her. She quickly ordered me to summon the Guardians. Though I would have deleted myself before even considering _helping_ these Mainframers, I had to obey. As I zipped into the Principle Office, I saw AndrAIa rush to Dot's side. Matrix and Enzo hovered on their zip-boards but didn't make any move toward the others. They traded anxious, uncertain glances.

I forced my face to look grim, but inside I was positively gleeful. Whatever had happened to Bob must be some sort of blessing. I ducked inside the Principle Office and alerted Phong to what had occurred. We called the Guardians in the Supercomputer, and they promised to send a team right away.

While we waited, I hurried back to the dome. Clasping Dot's shoulder reassuringly and manufacturing comforting smiles, I inspected the unconscious Guardian. It seemed that Bob was now covered with a thick, hard rock layer. Yet, it shimmered like glass, and bright colors flashed across its surface. His expression had been petrified into a look of shock and horror, and his hands were positioned in front of him as if to protect himself.

Dot was devastated; I could tell immediately by the anguished look on her face and how she constantly whispered, "How could this happen?" She told me in halting tones that the shell surrounding Bob was so thick that even AndrAIa's tough nails couldn't penetrate it. I stood beside Dot, ready to offer comfort, but not offering any words.

The Guardians reacted more quickly than one would have thought of sprites just recovering from viral infection. They sent a team to Mainframe. They stabilized Bob, just barely, and shipped him off through a portal. I put a hand on Dot's shoulder and felt her tremble as they carried Bob away, shouting to one another over the roar of the sirens.

Once Bob was gone, our grim group went inside the Principle Office. Dot and I retreated into her personal office to speak privately with Turbo, the Prime Guardian, about Bob's condition. Dot and Turbo both expressed wonder and confusion as to why Bob would commit an act like this.

I figured I knew the reason. I knew I had worried Bob with my talk of who was the "original Bob," but I had never expected him to take it this far. From what Phong told me before I found Dot, Bob had been trying to split him and Glitch apart. He left it at that – but I knew without doubt that Bob had been trying to win back Ms. Matrix.

I didn't tell Dot any of this. Yet, I wondered: How shallow could this Guardian be? He had always seemed so formidable an enemy when I had faced him in battle. . . . But since my arrival as another Bob, he had become an unhappy, insecure sprite who was now paying for what he had done.

I turned my attention back to the Prime Guardian and Dot. She was talking about how Bob had been acting strange for some time now – of course he had, Ms. Matrix – and I decided to lay the guilt further by saying, "Well, I don't think my arrival helped much." Dot instantly replied, "No, you can't blame yourself," which only showed how easily I had slipped past her defenses.

Turbo assured us that he would have his best sprites working on it. Then he closed the VidWindow, as there was nothing more to say.

Dot and I were alone in her office. At first we just stood there quietly, not looking at one another or exchanging words. I decided to continue my pretense of acting noble. "Maybe I should go back to the Supercomputer," I suggested gently, watching her sharply for her reaction.

Again, Dot quickly answered, "No! You should stay here. This is your home," she told me, her voice sounding close to a plea. I was feeling triumphant at how easily I was manipulating this sprite, but I kept my expression solemn.

Continuing my charade as Bob, I found myself saying, "This isn't my home. I don't know what to do" and things like that. I wondered at the words that came out of my mouth. Here I had a victory, and I was going on about how maybe I wasn't real and maybe I shouldn't be in Mainframe. Of course, it all made Dot keep clinging to me, making up reasons for me to stay.

Dot looked down at the ground, then quickly glanced up at me, her eyes hopefully searching my face. Our eyes met, and I was struck by the intensity of her violet irises. They were filled with a lifetime of horror, suffering, fright, and, most of all, deep pain.

The next thing I knew, we had wrapped our arms around each other and kissed. It was a long, lasting kiss, and I felt Dot's despair radiate through her, as she clutched my arms helplessly and kissed me with a tumult of emotion. I also felt a deep longing. Dot had always loved Bob, I knew – but somehow I liked the feeling of holding her, kissing her in return, being there for her –

I was glad that we pulled away soon. Dot's eyes were filled with a new expression, and she seemed brighter than she had been for the last few seconds. "I love you so much. I always have," she sighed, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. "You can't go away. . . . Promise?" she asked, and I found that I couldn't deny her.

"I promise," I told her, meaning every word – that is, acting as Bob, I meant every word. "I. Promise."

I kissed her again, but it was shorter. We pulled away, and I knew it was the perfect time to set up the next part of my scheme, what with Ms. Matrix _draping_ herself over me. If what I was planning came true, I could keep her close, and she would be by my side when the time came to take over the Net.

"Marry me, Dot," I urged her, "and we can be together for all time."

She looked as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Her face seemed so beautiful and serene, and she sighed. "Oh, Bob . . ." and kissed me once more.

Dot was nestled snugly in my arms, her head resting against my shoulder. A pleasant surge of happiness seemed to rise within me. Looking down at the sprite that trusted me and loved me – loved Bob, I meant – so much, I felt a smile spread across my face. I knew, of course, that I felt this great joy just because I would soon triumph in my scheme.

That was all – wasn't it?


	5. "Null Bot of the Bride" - Surprise

I was astounded at how smoothly and easily my plan was coming along. In the five seconds that I had been in Mainframe as gentle, happy "Bob," I had made more progress with the sprites than I had in all my hours as a power-hungry, infecting virus. While "sleeping with the enemy", shall we say, they had all, one by one, opened up to me and trusted me as one of their own. Now, there was a wedding being planned, and the real sprite was steadily losing his chances for survival. I laughed at the thought of Dot so eagerly accepting my marriage proposal, with everyone so happily congratulating us and supporting us as we would become newlyweds.

The next morning, when Dot and I had stood hand in hand before friends and family and announced our engagement, there had been hugs, and happy laughs, and great joy and celebration that seemed to make the whole system brighter.

Immediately, AndrAIa and Mouse had dragged Dot away, tittering about dress fittings, and "everything has to be _perfect_ for your wedding." As they retreated, Matrix clapped me heartily on the back, nearly causing me to fall. I hated being smaller than the boy.

"Congratulations, Bob," he had said, an actual _smile_ on his face. "I'm so glad you and Dot are finally getting together. You two are perfect, you know."

Already, there was a flurry of preparation as more and more sprites heard about the upcoming wedding. Dot and I had already discussed that we would have a ceremony in the Principle Office in the next few seconds. I helped sway Dot some on that; she had wanted to wait a few minutes, but I had told her that I couldn't wait that long to be married. She had melted and instantly agreed.

Now, that annoying waiter from Dot's Diner had taken over the official planning, and I shuddered to think of what he would do. But I grinned goofily and agreed to most of the proposed ideas.

He immediately wanted to find Dot and consult her on wedding plans. I followed along, because -- though I knew nothing of sprite or User wedding customs -- I thought we weren't supposed to peek in on the women when they were finding dresses. I hurried after Cecil, asking him to slow down, but he shoved his way past female binomes who shrieked when he tried to enter the dressing room, and he found his way to the curtain the three sprites stood behind.

It was then that this insane process of planning really began.

I couldn't help but grin when Mouse cut apart the curtain to admit us. I caught Dot's eye and she smiled. I smiled back, and for a moment I was lost in the complete, peaceful silence that passed between us.

Our preferences -- that is, what Dot and I wanted versus what Cecil had planned -- definitely clashed in the beginning. Dot and I had agreed on the War Room for a simple, intimate ceremony, but Cecil insisted we hold the ceremony in the huge Great Hall.

Dot gave the room an uncertain glance when Cecil showed it to us. She and I exchanged the same look, and she turned back to Cecil. "Um, Cecil, don't you think it's a bit . . . Spartan?" she offered cautiously.

"And . . . big?" I added for emphasis, in a very-Bob-like manner, I congratulated myself. But this was what Cecil wanted, and his description of the decorations eventually won us over.

When we returned to the War Room to pick up Matrix, a binome with glasses called, "Uh, Bob?"

"Yes?" I asked pleasantly, turning around, as I was in a rather good mood.

"How is . . . Bob?" the binome asked.

I felt my expression abruptly shift to annoyance. How _dare_ this binome ruin the scheme I was carefully planning by bringing the Guardian back into things! "We don't really know right now," I finally answered, trying to retain my pleasant tone from a moment earlier.

"But what about --" the binome started to add.

"It doesn't matter right now," I interrupted, my voice sounding harsher than I'd intended it to. I narrowed my eyes and glared at the binome, daring him to speak again.

A strange look came over the binome's face then, and his eye seemed to cloud over. "It doesn't matter," he slowly repeated. Without another word of concern, he turned back to his workstation.

I stood still in shock. Had I just somehow manipulated the binome into thinking what I'd wanted him to? It would make life even more interesting if I had indeed picked up another "trick" from my time in the Web.

I looked to the Matrix boy. "Matrix?" He was staring straight ahead. After a nano, he shook his head and blinked several times. His eyes refocused on me, and he said, "You're right, Bob. It doesn't matter right now."

I almost laughed out loud at how this was turning out. The callous lack of concern for Bob was highly amusing, and I could definitely use this to my advantage. 

We men also had our own "dress fittings" to go off to. Hack and Slash -- who possessed some strange adoration for Bob that I was surprised I hadn't noticed before -- Matrix, and I left the Principle Office to find suitable tuxedos.

As we touched down in Baudway, a small, bottle-shaped penguin happened to be trotting out of the men's bridal shop. We all stared at it for a perplexed moment. In return, the penguin blinked rapidly and shuffled away in silence.

I waited patiently in another room. I had already decided I would wear my dress uniform, while Matrix, Hack, and Slash -- the three males who would be closest to me in this ceremony -- got suited up.

I heard some sounds of commotion -- a high-pitched shriek or two -- and I wondered what was going on in there. I decided that I didn't really care to find out.

When the noise died down, I decided to enter the dressing room. I approached the two `bots and said, "Looking sharp, boys."

"Thanks –"

"– Bob," they answered in that annoying echo that had always irritated me.

I turned now to Matrix. "And that'll look great once it's finished, Matrix," I added. He didn't seem to share my sentiment. He rolled his eyes and fidgeted with the collar of his shirt, mumbling complaints about his suit.

It amused me how easily I was able to slip into our conversation the part about Matrix being my "best sprite." I hadn't wanted much emotion involved when I told him; I was trying to keep this as cold and calculated as I could. Yet, when I told him, his face softened, and he looked stunned and unbelievably pleased. He was completely at a loss for words; he blinked slowly and finally said in disbelief, "Did you say 'best sprite'?" I nodded, and he said in awe, "Bob -- it would be an honor."

This was beginning to get too sickening for me. "Well, you'd better download this then," I said, cutting the emotion short, handing him a file with "Duties of the Best Sprite."

I asked for Hack and Slash to let us have a word in private. Once they had left, Matrix asked in a hushed voice, "What's up?"

"I've just talked to Turbo," I replied in the same conspiratorial manner. It was true; he'd been updating me on the real Bob's progress. I hated to bring it up, but I figured this would be the last time before I made everyone conveniently forget the Guardian.

I was almost ready to manipulate Matrix's processor again, when he saved me the trouble by saying, "Don't tell Dot anything about it."

I was taken aback. What happened to the loving "we're-all-in-this-together" attitude of Mainframe?

Matrix explained, "I've never seen Sis this happy. Just don't tell her, okay?" That was fine by me.

As Matrix and I kept the secret, and no one thought in the next seconds to mention Bob, wedding preparations continued without problems. Matrix, AndrAIa, and I spent some time at the Diner discussing where Dot and I would spend our honeymoon when Ms. Matrix herself approached us.

"There you are!" she said, her voice filled with bright enthusiasm. She slid into the seat beside me and gave me a peck on the cheek. My arm slid around her, and she rested her head on my shoulder.

Dot was entirely having fun changing around her schedule for the wedding -- for the User's sake, she even _enjoyed_ rebooking her appointments so we could have our special second together! I shook my head and laughed as she went on about what a good time she was having.

She went on to ask Matrix if he would walk her down the aisle in place of her father, because Welman -- who, I thought, was the null they were keeping in Phong's office -- was in no shape to do so. Matrix and I anxiously traded nervous looks, as I had already asked him to be my best sprite. Just then, I saw the solution. "Enzo," I said as the little boy walked into the Diner, "just the sprite I needed to see. Would you do me the honor of being my best sprite?"

"Best sprite?" he repeated. "Sure!" Matrix, laughing, handed Enzo the file I had originally given him. After sending me a thankful glance, the big sprite turned back to Dot and answered in an uncharacteristically gentle voice, "Dot -- I would be honored." So that was settled, earning Matrix and me affectionate looks from the women sitting beside us.

I was becoming amused with all the traditions surrounding the wedding. It no longer seemed a simple plan but a long, involved process that was filled with appropriate clothing formats and decorations and several celebrations along the way. That night, the giggling women pulled Dot away with them to Al's on Level 31 for a bachelorette party. I was perfectly fine with the set-up, as long as the men received the same treatment.

I realized, too late, that I had made at least some mistake by asking Enzo to be my best sprite. I could have at least handed over the duties of organizing the "stag night" to Matrix so we could have dancers and I/O shots. But instead, we were entertained by clowns, balloons, and green jelly.

Figures.

While the women were sleeping off their hangovers the next morning, I performed the duties of the groom by checking out the Principle Office. I had to admit, the snooty waiter had done an admirable job of decorating the place for tomorrow. "This is excellent, wonderful. Really great; stunning," I showered him with compliments, meaning every word. Yet, it disgusted me how the spineless waiter flushed and grinned under my praise, and I restrained the urge to choke him.

Then it struck me that perhaps it wasn't so Bob-like for us to agree so readily on a topic. "You know, we were really warming up to each other there," I said cautiously.

"Yes -- I suppose we were," Cecil reflected thoughtfully.

"I didn't like it," I snarled. He snapped something in his language and flounced off. I left the Principle Office, feeling better about the Net.

Turbo updated me on Bob's condition, but I didn't care to let any of that information leave the private office. It seemed that even their best doctor couldn't coax so much as a life sign out of his body. He was fading fast, trapped inside the crystalline prison that Glitch had formed around him. It was such a perfect, perfect scheme, and I was surprised I hadn't thought of it myself.

But I had other thoughts on my mind, because the wedding was fast approaching. I woke up early that morning, and an unconscious feeling of excitement curled in my stomach. I stretched, showered, and hurried toward the Principle Office, where I found Matrix and we changed into our suits.

Hack and Slash, already in their formal wear, set to the job of seating the various guests as they arrived. The room was actually quite beautiful; we had a Guardian icon hanging on the right side of the room, and a civilian icon on the left, and they merged into a gold-and-white icon in the middle of the hall.

The guests were seated according to which sprite they knew personally. None of Bob's Supercomputer friends arrived; I hadn't wanted to increase my risk of being caught by adding filthy _Guardians_ to the list. The majority of the guests were binomes from Mainframe, whom Dot and "I" both knew.

I had come early, but by the time the wedding was supposed to start, we were still missing sprites. The hall began to feel stiflingly hot. I tugged at the collar of my uniform as I looked around impatiently to see if everyone had arrived. 

Matrix, in his tuxedo, bounded toward me. I tensed as if he were to hit me, but he stopped in his tracks and informed me that Dot was here. I breathed a sigh of relief, but Matrix added that Enzo and Phong were now nowhere to be seen.

"Why not?" I asked, seething inside and considering starting the wedding without them, though I knew Dot would never agree to it. There was no way that I would let my scheme be ruined by two meddling sprites!

But before we could worry any more, the sprites in question appeared, fully prepared for the ceremony. Enzo was already wearing his tuxedo, and his hair was slicked back, and Phong was ready to act as minister.

"Go get her," I told Matrix. He grinned sheepishly and started to head for the back of the hall where the women were, but Enzo caught his arm. "We've got somebody else to do that," he told us, looking very pleased with himself.

The doors to the Principle Office were open, and bright light streamed in. Organ music began to play, and Dot, draped in a sleeveless white gown, slowly made her way down the aisle, on the arm of someone I didn't recognize. I stared hard, wondering if that were really my pet null Nibbles -- had he ever been just a null? I now thought -- in some sort of robot suit, escorting Dot down the aisle.

"Dad?" Matrix breathed incredulously with a look of astonishment on his face. He looked down to Enzo, and they smiled the exact same smile.

I had to admit, Ms. Matrix looked beautiful. The long dress and sparkling veil made her look like a celestial being, wreathed in light. Her pure smile seemed wide enough to fill her face. The other two women trailed behind Dot, carrying bouquets of flowers and wearing horrendously poofy bridesmaids' dresses. They would never live down that embarrassment, I thought amusedly -- of course, they might not live past the next second anyway.

Cameras were flashing all around, and everyone watched with awe and delight as the happy bride came down the aisle. I smiled, watching her come closer to me, the distance between us growing smaller, until we would stand side by side. Soon, Dot Matrix would be mine forever.

The null in the suit -- whoever it was -- let go of Dot and allowed her to stand by my side. Facing me with pure love in her eyes, she sent me an impish grin, and I suddenly found myself wondering what would happen on our wedding night. For now, we clasped hands and turned toward Phong. The old sprite, who would act as minister, cleared his throat and began to read from the book he held.

"Friends and family, we are here today to witness the joining of these two sprites . . ." His words trailed on and on, and I wasn't even aware of what they meant. I smiled at Dot, I stared around me, and I was suddenly claimed with a sensation of ultimate . . . _comfort, _or some feeling like it. At this moment, all I could feel was an overwhelming elation, for this second and for the seconds that would follow. I felt as if some feeling of cheeriness had been uprooted from my code and now seeped through my body.

Dot and I repeated vows from the book Phong held, gripping each other's hands tightly. I could see the anticipation and nervousness on Dot's face, but she smiled without tiring. Finally the time came when Phong asked the ill-fated question: "If anyone has any objections as to why these two sprites should not be joined in marriage, speak now or forever hold your peace." I knew I had no objections, and neither did anyone around me.

"I do!" a clear voice rang out in the stillness of the hall. Startled out of our peaceful daze, we all turned around to see a portal from the Supercomputer open. I felt my insides clench, and it took all my willpower not to revert to my original form when Bob stepped through the portal. He still had his spiky hair and silvery scales, but in place of his silver uniform he wore a partially degraded Guardian uniform, and what looked like a keytool sat on his arm.

"Bob!" Dot cried, abruptly dropping my hands and looking guilty yet happy to see him. "You're okay!"

"I'm far from okay!" he cried angrily, striding up to the dais on which we stood. Facing Dot, he urged, "You can't do this, Dot. I love you."

I saw her expression shift unexpectedly. Realization, surprise, horror -- I had to stop this.

"I've had enough of this!" I growled, bringing my arm back and landing a huge blow on Bob's face. He turned his face aside with a groan, but he recovered quickly. Leveling his left arm, he started to shout a command to Glitch, when Dot intervened.

"Stop!" she yelled, the anguish in her voice piercing through my anger. Bob and I turned to her in surprise. "But, Dot --" we protested in unison.

"Bob, I'm sorry," she started, and I felt my pulse quicken. After all this, could she take Bob's side again? But my panic was short-lived; Dot was speaking to the real Bob, ironically. "I'm sorry," Dot repeated with a deep sigh.

"But Dot --" Bob tried to argue as she walked back to me. I kept my face carefully neutral.

Dot placed her slender hand in mine again, and I felt my core-com skip several beats. She was actually choosing me over the real Bob! Triumph had never tasted so sweet and so close. "I'm sorry," she said again, her voice weighing heavily with sadness. "I'm sorry."

I shot a nasty grin over Dot's shoulder at Bob. The color completely drained from his face as he fully realized that he was the copy. Without a word, he turned and started to walk away.

"But, Dot, he must be the real Bob!" Enzo said, his small face filled with confusion. "He has Glitch!"

__

Stupid little boy! I thought angrily. If I weren't Bob, I would've whipped out my claws and plunged them into his tiny chest right now.

"You wouldn't understand, Enzo," Dot said gently. I followed her gaze to the little boy, aware that the nasty grin was still on my face.

"But why?" Enzo asked sadly.

"You'll understand when you're older," Dot answered, and I nodded.

As Bob was slowly walking out of our lives, Glitch started to beep and whir on his arm. A loud gasp rose from the crowd as the keytool lifted off Bob's arm and floated across the hall. I was startled as Glitch came to rest on my arm and attached itself firmly. It continued to make humming noises, but my attention was focused on Bob, who now looked too heartbroken to process.

Glitch's betrayal of Bob sealed the sprites' decision. "So it's final," Matrix rumbled softly, shaking his head in amazement.

"I'm the copy," Bob whispered in disbelief. Again, he turned away from us and continued walking out of the hall, his footsteps those of a defeated sprite.

"Bob --" Dot started hesitantly.

  
"No," Bob cut her off. "I thought I could change things, but I'm ruining everything. I should go."

Yes, you should leave now, Guardian, so I can continue to take over your home -- and your friends won't realize until it's too late.

With hunched shoulders, the Guardian slowly began to shuffle out of the hall. Watching him go, I realized I would have preferred deleting him in a grand fight. But soon he would be gone forever, so I didn't let myself complain.

Every head turned to watch in wide-eyed silence as he made his way down the long aisle that now seemed endless; I just wanted him gone!

I watched Ms. Matrix carefully for her reaction. She looked on the verge of tears, her eyes focused on Bob's retreating form.

"Should I -- continue?" Phong asked hesitantly.

Dot shut her eyes and took a deep breath as if to shake off what had just happened. I nodded encouragingly at her, and she said to Phong, "Yes, please. Continue." I took her hands again, and she managed a watery smile.

Phong read again from the book. "If anyone has any objections that these two should not be together, then speak now or --"

"Aaahh!" A scream tore from my throat, because a searing wave of pain had just raced up my left arm. I looked down at the insolent keytool, which had begun clicking and beeping agitatedly. _What in the Net --?_

With dawning horror, I stared at the keytool's small screen. On it, I saw the image of something being transferred from _my body_ to the keytool.

Phong stopped reading and asked what was wrong. _No, no,_ I urged silently, unable to formulate the actual words. _Keep reading! Continue; I must make it through this second._

"Aahh!" I cried again, in startled, wordless pain, clutching my arm tightly as burning spasms attacked the limb and slowly spread to the rest of my body. What was happening? Why was I experiencing this torture -- and why now, of all times? This pain -- I felt as if a sharp object had been inserted into me and was now extracting something large from deep inside my body, with excruciating slowness.

Murmurs of surprise rose from the crowd, and Bob -- who I thought had finally left -- turned, his eyes widening with surprise.

As if this second couldn't get any more interesting, Glitch detached from my arm and flew like an eager dog toward its owner, Bob. He stared, not understanding, as Glitch settled again on his arm. Immediately, Bob began to writhe and cry out like I was.

"What's -- happening -- to me?" we cried out at the same time. Yet, in an instant, I felt my voice becoming rougher and coarser. I focused all my willpower on keeping Bob's form; Bob, Bob, Bob, Guardian 452, that meddling, insolent, blue-skinned Guardian who would be the only one to save me now. But in my processor's eye I could already see my mental picture of the Guardian slipping away, driven out of my consciousness by the white-hot pain. I could no longer control my shape, and I felt Bob's code inside me breaking down into nothingness.

I doubled over both in pain and in an effort to hide my shifting form. The others reached out to me, asking what was wrong. I couldn't answer them; I fought to keep up my Bob appearance.

Something strained at my back, stretching my skin as I shifted back into my original form. I was a mess of blue skin darkening, then lightening, my hands and feet twisting into claws that had been mutated by the harsh Web. The first time I had shifted, it hadn't hurt. But now I was suffering more than I could ever remember; Bob's skin was too small for the form that was pushing, bubbling, fighting to break through.

I hunched over further, crying out in full-fledged agony, unable to help what was happening. Suddenly, spikes erupted through my spine and Bob's scream became the roar of a fully unleashed virus.

I spun around, the wolf ripping apart its sheepskin.

The reactions to my appearance were exactly what I would have expected had I stepped out of the portal in my viral form a cycle ago, and I felt strangely satisfied to finally reveal myself to these idiots. A twinge of pride rose in me that I could still bring fear to every sprite and binome's core-com.

The Mainframers in the pews instantly jumped up, screaming, and fled for the doorway. Bob cried out, "Megabyte!" finally understanding the situation. Really, it took him long enough.

I looked at the sprites, all wearing their best clothing-formats, standing around me like dumbfounded fools, wondering how their beloved Guardian had actually been a bloodthirsty virus.

Then I looked down to Dot, and I grinned maliciously at the look of total horror that was written on her face. "M . . . Megabyte?" she managed in a stunned whisper.

My grin widened at the disgust that appeared in her expression. "It seems my charade is at an end," I observed with an airy, casual glance around the room, flexing my claws; how I preferred claws to soft, puny fingers. I chuckled, enjoying the sound of my own deep, smooth voice. "A pity. We would have made a perfect couple." The disgust on her face only deepened into revulsion.

Once the initial shock had worn off, the sprites tensed and reached for their weapons, only to find that none of them were wearing their guns and swords. They had never thought that, going to a wedding, anything could go wrong. The only one with a weapon was that Game sprite, but before she could strike, Bob declared, "He's mine!" He posed with his keytool ready, his eyes narrowed. _How I had been waiting for this moment._

"I've missed you Guardian," I said, relishing the new situation. It seemed I _would_ be allowed the privilege to beat Bob to deletion. "Welcome back."

"Back and fully charged!" he replied. A thrill built inside me at that moment -- the knowledge that I was going to crush each and every sprite and binome to a pulp, beginning with the one I hated most.

I lunged at Bob, causing the hall to tremble with my heavy footfalls on the carpet. He ran toward me, and a bright golden shield leapt up from his keytool. He rammed it into my chest, catching me unsuspecting and sending me flying into the air. I landed with a crash, but I recovered, spun around, and slashed at him with my claws, but he ducked back.

I continued to slash at him, and Bob kept using Glitch to fight me off. The keytool seemed to function perfectly without any commands, and it worked with unlimited power.

Bob thrust hard at me, striking me in the stomach and in the jaw. I doubled over and blinked several times to clear the force of the blow. I whipped out a tentacle from my hand, which lashed around Bob's neck and yanked him toward me. Grabbing his head with my claws, I flung him into ten rows of pews. He smashed through them, causing them to splinter, and slid across the room. He crashed into the huge organ with a clamorous bang. It fell apart and buried him under the heavy brass pipes.

The Mainframers all gasped and stared at each other anxiously. I glanced at them for only a nanosecond, then back at the spot where Bob had fallen.

A golden light appeared beneath the pile of pipes, and they sprang up to form a glowing wall. Bob bent the pipes in front of them using the beam from his keytool; he wasn't kidding when he said he was stronger.

Before I knew what was happening, he had used his Glitch powers to wrap a brass pipe around my body. I fought and yelled in rage, but Bob persisted, using his keytool to tighten the bar around my arms and chest. I gathered all my strength, fueled by fury, and with a cry of outrage I flung the twisted pipe away from my body. It snapped off and hit Bob, sending Bob off his feet and back into the pile of pipes.

I was already on him by the time he was sitting up, shaking his head. I grabbed him by the shoulders, running as fast as my feet would take me, and I slammed his head into a huge pillar. The crash should have at the very least knocked him out, but Bob just shook his head and tried to wriggle out of my grip. I smashed him through several more pillars, causing mass destruction around us as the supports began to shudder and waver.

Again, Bob used that infernal keytool to free himself and regain his balance. Surprised that he could slip out of my grip so easily, I slammed face-first into the wall.

Screaming binomes were running away, clearing space for Bob and me to fight. I leapt at him and slashed with all my might, but he used his keytool to send a full-power energy blast at my chest. The blast sent me crashing through the doors and bouncing down the steps of the Principle Office before coming to a rest facing the ground. I slowly pushed myself up on my arms.

I looked up to see Bob jump over the huge stairs in one bound and land in front of me.

"Why, Megabyte?" he demanded. "Why do this?"

So many reasons -- how could I begin to explain? Maybe I would tell him -- when he lay broken and beaten at my hands, helpless and close to deletion. For now, he would have to puzzle over my sneering response: "It _amused_ me."

"Well, laugh this off!" Bob shouted. "Glitch, power-ram!" A burst of keytool-energy came spiraling toward me, knocking me onto my ASCII and sending me skidding back into the ground. I stood up from the furrow I had made to see Bob quickly advancing toward me. His eyes were filled with more rage than I had ever seen before.

"Impressive," I commented, brushing myself off. "You're stronger than I remember."

"I've been working out," Bob replied with a cocky grin.

He made the mistake of stepping too close to me. I opened my mouth and let loose a spray of acid that struck him directly in the eyes. He cried out and covered his eyes, stumbling away. I leapt over his head and landed on the steps again, between Mouse and Matrix. The burning desire to strike them down right here, for how they had ruined my rule of Megaframe, nearly overwhelmed me. But that would all come later. For the moment, I flung them aside and bounded back inside the Principle Office.

Dot stood in front of the doors, stricken but as lovely as ever. "Ah, the blushing bride," I leered, and I saw her face contort with fear and loathing. I advanced on her, and all she did was hold up an arm for protection. I was beyond all caring of her opinion of me -- I had never cared what Ms. Matrix thought, never. "One final kiss?" I laughed, grabbing her around the back and the head and gently dipping her into a kiss. She fought against me, but I enjoyed every drawn-out moment of it.

But then I recalled that moment when I had held her close to me and she had whispered, "I love you Bob. I always have." She had kissed me then, and I admit I had felt something there -- but that was as Bob. I was Megabyte now; I would never again be the Guardian.

Leaving Dot fallen on the steps, I entered the Principle Office before Bob could come after me again. Binomes gasped and ran in the other direction as they saw me looming in the doorway.

I glared around. I wasn't interested in deleting them all right now; at the moment, I just needed to safely escape. Then, my eyes fell on the binome who had asked me about Bob a few seconds ago; he was literally quivering with fear. By now, I imagined he was regretting what he had said. He must have thought the same, for he turned to run. Before he could escape, I grabbed him around the head and lifted him to eye-level. "Get out!" I roared to the remaining binomes, and they fled.

The pitiful binome trembled, begging me not to delete him. Rather than delete him, I took a sample of his code. He swayed and fell unconscious; I must have drained his energy as well as his code. 

I dove under a pew that hadn't been damaged and focused my concentration on an image of the sprite whose code I now held. The sea of fleeing binomes had been too panicked to notice where I had gone. Leaving the drained binome behind, I jumped up and ran toward the doors, flailing my arms and shouting as if I were running from Megabyte myself.

Chaos was already befalling Mainframe. As I made my way through the lower, seedier levels of Mainframe, shifting my form occasionally so as to remain hidden, I saw binomes clinging to one another and shivering with fear of Megabyte, "The Infector." I coughed into my hand to hide my chuckling.

That talking television was sauntering through the levels, taking random interviews with sprites and spreading word of my return in his cheeky, irritating manner. I grabbed him as he was passing by Al's on Level 31 and drained him. Leaving him in an alley, I caught up with the camera crew and continued around Mainframe.

I had learned that the city was easiest to take over when the citizens were in mass chaos, so as Mike the TV I gave a "special report." I watched the Mainframers fall deeper into disarray, running around with no way to protect themselves. Once that was done, I hurried back to Al's Wait and Eat, where I knew I would find some of my more loyal followers.

I planned to rebuild my armies to their former glory to achieve what I had always dreamed of: taking control of the Principle Office.


	6. "Crouching Binome, Hidden Virus" - Conqu...

Before I returned to Level 31, I made my special report as Mike the TV. Already the citizens of Mainframe were panicking, uncertain of what to do or where to go. While I was waiting with the news crew and preparing my "report," I caught sight of a group of neo-virals protesting outside the Principle Office. I had heard of these sprites causing trouble ever since the second I arrived. Since news had spread of my return, they were causing even more trouble by trying to rally my supporters. 

The binomes marched in an unruly crowd outside the dome, shouting and waving signs that read "Bring Back Meggy!" and "The Viral Skull is Calling You!" It was all rather amusing and somewhat touching.

"What do we want?" Lt. Chauncy, my strongest supporter, called out.

"We wanna be viral!" the binomes answered.

"When do we want it?"

"NOW!" They continued at this cheer until they were eventually broken up by the CPUs, with the help of some mysterious binomes.

Meanwhile, my enemies were holed up inside the Principle Office, hiding rather than coming out to fight. They had always been cowards, relying on elaborate plans rather than brute force. Funny, I had thought Matrix, at the least, would charge at me and threaten to delete me -- as he had failed to do before. How did those sprites think they could stop me? The fools didn't even know who and where I was.

I gave my report and watched the city erupt in screams of terror. As binomes were running into their homes and file-locking doors and windows, I slipped away to Level 31 again. I also saw the announcement Phong gave via VidWindow, and I wondered if the sprites knew what I had done as the talking television. I thought I had acted rather in-character for that cheeky appliance. In my opinion, I was becoming quite the master of authentic imitations.

All the neo-virals were coming together at the shady part of the city, I noticed as I quietly sneaked inside Al's Wait and Eat. There was Herr Doktor, one of my other strongest slaves, and his assistant -- the disfigured binome with mismatched feet -- sat at a booth. Herr Doktor was moaning about his injured fingers, but he didn't seem to have noticed me -- as Mike -- yet. I wasn't ready for him to.

Still disguised, I listened to the conversation going on among the four neo-virals at the next booth. Lt. Chauncy was there, as were three other officers who I had seen at the protest. The binomes wore the navy blue uniform that all my officers wore, even though they weren't infected. The fact that these binomes were regular citizens of Mainframe who had once been infected and wanted again to be under my control was amazing. 

They were growling about what they would do to the binomes who had driven them away. "When we get our hands on those two, they'll be sorry!" one binome cried loudly.

"I got their license, don't worry, BDR 529," Chauncy assured him. "We'll teach 'em the meaning of the word respect!"

I decided it was time to reveal myself. "Respect!" I laughed, sauntering up to their booth. "And what would a neo-viral know about respect?"

"Watch it, Mike!" yelled the first binome who had spoken. "Or you'll be the first to get to war when the revolution comes!" The others nodded in satisfied agreement.

  
"Revolution!" I crowed. "_Yeah right!_ And how're you going to do that, hmm? Together, you haven't the CPU power to drive a calculator!"

They exchanged glances with one another, growing angry just as I had hoped. It had been my purpose to test the faith of these binomes. From their reactions, they remained willingly on my side.

"Ah, that's it!" the first binome screamed, hopping out of his seat and coming toward me with a frown on his face. "I'm gonna change your channel, pal!"

I never let him carry out his threat. "Stay where you are," I ordered, my voice smoothly switching from high-pitched and annoying to cold as steel.

The binome froze, his eye widening in horrified realization. I curled up and focused on returning to my original form. As I morphed back into my own form, I realized that it was becoming quicker and easier to do so. In two nanoseconds, I towered over the binomes, my claws outstretched.

"Uh-oh!" the first neo-viral squeaked, hopping back into his seat. Now all four of my officers were quivering, staring up at me in amazement.

"Mein Grossenbyte!" Herr Doktor cried in delight, clapping his bandaged hands together.

"Ah, good doctor." I nodded at him. "Keeping the faith, I see?" I was pleased to see my faithful doctor again. I frowned slightly when I saw that Herr Doktor had never reverted back into his original, uninfected state, as the others had.

"What?!" yelled Al from the back of the diner. I looked around to see who else was in the bar. My gaze fell on Al's Waiter. The binome glanced back, then at me, and his eye widened in fear.

"I have returned," I announced, savoring the words. To the neo-virals I ordered, "Now submit your PIDs and join me. Together we will welcome a new viral dawn.

"Do this willingly and you will reap the rewards of the victorious," I continued in my grand speech, noticing out of the corner of my eye that Al's Waiter was slowly edging to the back of the diner. "Resist and . . ."

I pointed one hand in the waiter's direction. Several coils flew out of my hand and wrapped around the binome, swiftly infecting him. He slumped on the floor, as his skin paled to a stony gray not unlike the Medusa Bug's infection, and his eye turned a light aqua color, like my own eyes.

The neo-virals hurriedly pulled out their icons and held them up to me in trembling hands. I touched each icon and let my infection flow through it. The virals returned to the blue-and-green color they had always had. Their eyes widened as the infection raced through their codes, and then those eyes became green, with red pupils. They smiled, reflecting my own malicious victory.

I shot my coils around the bar, infecting the other patrons. Those who had been present at the rally were rewarded with the standard blue-and-green infection, while others, like Al's Waiter, became aqua-and-gray drones.

Once many more binomes were under my control, the next step was to find suitable vehicles. It seemed by beloved Tor had been destroyed in the restart. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that many of the virals who had held out hope for me had made hiding places in the lower levels of Mainframe, where no one thought to look. There, my supporters had hidden away damaged ABCs and scraps of transports and repaired them.

As I was preparing my troops, my spies from the upper levels informed me of a group of CPUs heading for the Principle Office. What was more intriguing was that the CPUs were escorting a transport that carried the gateway command.

__

Of course! In a flash I remembered, the second before I had proposed to Dot, when Phong and Dot showed me the gateway command, hidden away in the Principle Office, and explained to me how they had used it to defeat Daemon. Back then, I had mentally noted its location, but I hadn't thought of the gateway's capabilities until now.

"Follow it!" I ordered. "Surround the transport and take the gateway command."

I watched through a VidWindow as my ABCs raced after the convoy of CPUs. Before the transports could safely enter the Principle Office, my virals attacked. They shot down two CPUs in the back, and two more in the front. One transport turned to face the ABCs, but they blasted it to shrapnel. Soon the eight ABCs had annihilated all the defenses surrounding the remaining CPU. As the transport carrying the gateway command tried to turn and fly into the Principle Office, eight more ABCs rounded the opposite corner and hemmed it in.

I watched with a wide grin as one of the ABCs boarded the carrier, and two virals punched their way through. They took the controls and sent an affirmative to my binomes and me. They looked confused, however, when they said, "There's no one here." I dismissed it. We had the transport; that was all that mattered. Before the sprites could send more CPUs to protect the gateway, my ABCs carried it away.

The ABCs flew over the unsuspecting CPUs' heads, past the Principle Office, and down into Mainframe's lowest level. I waited with the majority of my army in one of the secret places my supporters had set up, an old warehouse.

The ABCs silently flew into the warehouse, trailing the gateway command by a tractor beam. My scientists took the gateway off the transport and set it up. I was struck with the memory of the time I had attempted to open a portal to the Supercomputer with the same gateway – had it been only an hour ago? It seemed so long ago that I had tried to get out of this system. Now I would.

I stood in front of the gateway command, waiting expectantly for Herr Doktor to power up the gateway command. As I stared through the empty ring, my patience began to wear thin.

"Herr Doktor, it is only a matter of time before the Guardian and his friends show up," I reminded him impatiently. His response was to continue working. In a few nanoseconds, I was temporarily relieved as the ring before me filled with shiny silver.

"The gateway is online and functioning perfectly, Lord Megabyte," Herr Doktor announced with a huge grin.

I couldn't help but laugh at how close my victory was. "Excellent. Now, hurry, target the Supercomputer." Herr Doktor punched in the coordinates, and my reflection in the shimmering surface was replaced with the sight of tall, shining buildings of the Supercomputer.

"Finally!" I let out a sigh. "I'm rid of this pathetic little system."

I gazed carefully at the rows of binomes standing at attention to me. My army was growing quickly; soon there would be double the number of slaves I used to have under my control. They all watched me with hope in their eyes for their leader.

I squared my shoulders, held my head high, and walked straight through the thick shield of the portal. I closed my eyes against the bright light as I passed through, feeling my core-com twist in anticipation. I felt the portal drag at the edges of my code, then fall away. I opened my eyes, expecting to be surrounded by glittering, golden buildings.

Instead, I found myself on the other side of the gateway command.

I looked around wildly, my eyes narrowed in fury. The binomes shifted and glanced uncertainly at one another. _What was going on?_ I demanded silently, my thoughts a swirl of rage. _Why hadn't the gateway command transported me to the Supercomputer?_

I snarled and turned toward Herr Doktor, who was as panicked as I was annoyed. He cried out in his own language and swept his eye over the console. 

"Herr Doktor, what is going on?" I demanded.

He and his assistant frantically punched buttons, but there was no activity on the surface of the portal. "Ah, ah, I do not understand!" he cried.

A loud pounding reached my ears. I whipped my head toward the ABC docked in front of me. The hatch shook and rattled for a moment, then it fell away to reveal the Guardian and his fellow sprites, as well as a group of CPUs.

"Go to Dell," I muttered under my breath. 

"Having trouble, Megabyte?" Bob taunted, his arm with that keytool held out. Matrix pointed Gun around menacingly, and the Game sprite's nails were elongated.

"It's a trap!" I snarled. 

"You're not the only one with Trojan Horse abilities!" Matrix yelled.

My virals began to fire at the meager group of sprites. They returned fire in a flurry of energy blasts, bullets, and fingernails. As my army's blasts became more precise, striking the ground around the sprites, they ran behind some docked ABCs. Bullets pounded the ships' hulls. I saw Bob and Matrix both pop out from opposite sides of an ABC and fire blasts of energy, then turn back before my virals could retaliate.

Fortunately, I had expected some sort of attack from the sprites. While they were hiding behind transports, I retreated behind a huge piece of machinery. I recalled one second, during my time as Bob, that Little Enzo's irritating cur had barked and growled at me. Though at first unnerved that this dog might discover me, Dot had assured me that Frisket always disliked Bob. To calm down that mangy beast, I had touched his neck. To my amazement, his had eyes fluttered closed, and he had dropped to the ground and began snoring softly. Staring from Frisket to my hand, I had felt a sample of his code swimming around in my body. 

I concentrated on that code now, bringing it to the surface of my body. Before the change took place, I slapped a button on the side of the console. Then, I felt myself shrinking, and my arms and legs grew stubby. Short, red fur sprouted all over my body. My ears grew long and floppy, but my jaw remained mostly the same.

The button I had pressed triggered an alias I had stored away in fear of being attacked. I watched the alias step out from behind the console, my mutated form in every detail, and sprint toward an ABC, just as I would do. I had programmed it so I could see and speak through the alias; without my control, it was a voiceless shell, with no code even.

I directed the alias the way I wanted it to go, scanning the battlefield around me. So far "I" hadn't been noticed.

"Aah, Ein Grossenbiter!" Herr Doktor cried, seeing the alias. I silently cursed the incompetent binome, because Bob had seen the alias running for the transport.

"Don't let Megabyte shift!" the Guardian shouted, still firing with his keytool. "Matrix!" he called to the boy.

"I'm on it!" Matrix called back. "Gun! Target!"

I watched as a huge, red target focused on the alias' chest. It looked down, then started to run. Matrix followed the target with his gun but didn't shoot. It seemed they weren't trying to delete me.

I told the alias to touch the nearest viral and absorb its code. The alias did so, and I watched "Megabyte" shift into the viral. When the alias started to run, however, the target remained on its chest. Herr Doktor tried to scurry behind the alias, but it took his code as well, and he fell to the ground. Now the alias continued to run in the form of the doctor, with two binomes lying senseless beside it. When Herr Doktor's assistant ran toward the alias, it took the assistant's code as well. Nothing seemed to shake Matrix off the trail, however, and now there were five unconscious virals surrounding the alias.

"Game over, virus!" Matrix yelled, holding his Gun out. The alias regained the form of Megabyte and held out a hand. "Don't!" he shouted. "_No_!"

Matrix shot, and I watched with dismay as the burst knocked the alias back several feet and suspended him in a tear. He thrashed angrily with his claws and let out a scream.

"Glitch! Portal!" Bob called, pointing his keytool at the alias. A beam shot out from Glitch and stabilized the tear into a portal. The alias was pushed into some sort of jail cell, and the portal disappeared.

The fighting was over, and each of the Mainframers visibly relaxed. The Game sprite ran to the Matrix boy and embraced him. I looked at Bob, who was talking to Dot via his keytool. A small smile played over his face.

The CPUs cheered and congratulated one another. I shuffled out from behind my hiding place and trotted over to where the three sprites stood together. I barked softly and nudged Matrix's leg with my nose.

Matrix looked down at me and smiled, one arm around AndrAIa's waist. "Good boy," he said affectionately, scratching me behind my ears. "Let's go home."

We piled back into the stolen ABC and lifted off for the Principle Office. Through the window, I saw Frisket re-appear from behind a crate and look up at our retreating ship, his ears perked up questioningly. The sprites were too jubilant to notice, however.

I had chosen the perfect disguise for sneaking into the Principle Office because I could wander aimlessly behind one of the Matrix sprites while controlling the alias with my mind. I settled down in a corner of the War Room and stared around. 

"Energy shakes for everyone!" Dot called out, a huge smile brightening her face. The assorted binomes cheered in reply and hurried to bring refreshments for all. The Game sprite and the little Matrix sat with some CPUs, talking and laughing. Above them, Ms. Matrix was speaking with Mouse.

I closed my eyes and rested my head on my paws. At this moment, "Megabyte" was being held captive in another room, guarded by Bob and Matrix. I let my subconscious sink into the shell of the alias. When I reopened my eyes, a firewall sprang up before me; it seemed mere bars weren't enough to hold me, I concluded smugly.

Bob was speaking about the whereabouts of the actual gateway command. It was in the Core Control Room -- I should have known. Never mind, for I would be taking that command _very_ soon.

"You know, I really must congratulate you, Bob," I said. "It was the perfect trap." And it was. They had caught me off guard and almost succeeded in capturing me.

"Thank you, but I can't take the credit," Bob answered as he stared at the console in front of him.

I understood immediately. "No, no, you never were the brains of the opposition, were you?" I figured, looking at the cell that confined "me." "I assume I have the lovely Dot Matrix to thank for my present circumstances."

"Seems fair," Bob replied. His voice was calm, but in his next words there was clear anger -- stronger than I had ever felt from the Guardian before. "After what _you_ tried to do to _her_!"

"Oh, this must go a long way to satisfy your overactive sense of fair play," I shot back. Bob looked up sharply and glared.

"Let's get this over with!" Matrix growled. _We will Boy, we will. . . ._

"So what now?" I inquired lazily, again inspecting my surroundings. "Deletion?"

"No. Just a scan," Bob replied, and I was surprised. After all I had done to these sprites, especially the low blows I had struck, in his place I would have beaten the evil virus to a pulp.

"I don't believe in deletion," Bob continued. Of course I knew that.

"You can't go against your code," I argued, still wondering what was in store for me. There was no way the Guardian, Ms. Matrix, and the boy, with their combined fury, would let me off without serious punishment.

"And neither can you," Bob replied, still not betraying his motive. "That's the problem. It's not your fault. You're _programmed_ to be this way. We've just got to work out a way to reprogram you."

Now I was beginning to understand. Waving a hand at myself, I asked, "So . . . I won't be a virus?" _What a thing to do, Bob. You know how much I crave power, and what I will do for it. If I am unable to even reach for power, I will cease to process._

"Ah," I said, my voice as relaxed and smooth as it could be. "A fate worse than deletion." I leaned forward and bared my sharp teeth. "And they call _me_ a monster."

I watched with satisfaction as Bob's expression tightened, an obvious show that my words had struck him. He abruptly dropped his gaze to the control panel and began punching buttons without looking up again.

A beam of bright yellow light shot up from the floor and began to slowly rise up my body. I held out my arms to ward off the scan, but it continued up and through my codes.

I was shaken out of my control of the alias by Enzo kicking me in the side. I blinked and sat up, looking around. I was still in Frisket's form, in the War Room.

"Come on, boy," Enzo urged me, tugging at my collar. "Celebrate with us."

I gave a soft yap, inwardly seething at the boy. I remained in my spot, and after a few nanos he gave up and returned to his seat with a shrug.

I closed my eyes and tried to regain my control of the alias. The yellow light reached over my head and disappeared, I watched as a VidWindow popped up, displaying the results of the scan. I tensed, readying myself for Bob and Matrix's reactions.

Bob stared at the window in shock. A string of zeroes and ones trailed across the screen, with no discernable information.

"This . . . isn't possible!" Bob cried in confusion. "There's nothing here!" His head whipped around to me. "Or there!"

I grinned smugly.

"Bob!" Matrix shouted. "Drop the firewall!"

"I can't!" Bob yelled, looking almost panicked. "H-he'll -- _Matrix_!"

It was too late. The boy, impatient as always, shot the control panel beside my cell. The firewall instantly dropped, but before I could order the alias to run, Matrix had leapt inside and seized me by the throat. The code of the alias began to fray as he pressed my head against the wall.

Seeing the white flashes around my head, Bob realized, "It's an alias! It's not him."

Thank the User these sprites were at least intelligent enough to realize such a simple thing as this. Really, I had left behind an alias for Bob in Mainframe's last seconds. If he had encountered that one, why hadn't he thought to check beforehand on my new alias?

Matrix leaned his face in close to mine and growled, "Where are you?"

Here was where it all came together. I laughed and replied, "_Guess_."

Overcome with rage, Matrix punched the alias full in the face. I had already severed my control and was vaguely aware of the alias exploding into shining white fragments, and Matrix and Bob exchanging expressions of surprise and slowly dawning horror.

I awoke again in the War Room. It took literally a nanosecond before a huge VidWindow opened in front of Ms. Matrix, and Bob cried, "Dot!"

The sharp exclamation cut through the chatter and celebration, and all eyes turned to the window.

"We don't have Megabyte!" Bob shouted so all could hear. "It was an alias! He must be in the War Room with you! One of you is Megabyte, do you understand? He's tricked us! Get out of there now!"

Dot pulled back, her eyes wide with disbelief. Mouse had a similar expression. AndrAIa, Enzo, that annoying binome Specky, and all others were frozen in mid-panic.

I knew it was time to reveal myself. I felt a surge of pride again as I lifted up from the floor. My skin writhed and shimmered until I stood up, comfortable as myself once again.

Then all Dell broke loose. CPUs screamed and ran for the doorway, but I stretched out my hand. Several cables shot forth and swiftly turned the CPUs into gray, apathetic virals. The other CPUs ran around in disorganized panic, waving their arms and not thinking to shoot at me.

Dot looked around wildly, and her eyes fell on her little brother. "Enzo!" she cried, but before she could run after the boy, Hack and Slash seized her by the arms and pulled her into the corridor, the heavy door slamming shut behind them.

Mouse drew her katana and bared her teeth. I sent a handful of coils her way, but she hacked most of them to useless pieces. As I reeled the coils back in, the Game sprite rushed to Mouse's side. She grabbed the hacker by the elbow and attempted to tow her out of the War Room. Rather than let them escape, I shot another bunch of coils. The two sprites were too slow to run, and their eyes widened.

But before I had captured the women, another sprite sailed in front of them and took the full force of the coils. I was as surprised as Mouse and AndrAIa when Phong fell to the ground, coils embedded in his body, his skin already turning aqua and gray.

AndrAIa and Mouse escaped, and Welman Matrix almost did as well with his son. As they were escaping into Dot's office and were closing the doors, I shot out more cables. They stopped the doors, and a third reached in and infected the robot. The mechanical suit turned navy blue, and the null inside was powerless to resist as the infected robot tightened its grip on Little Enzo. He looked up at the robot in open-mouthed shock.

Confident that another of my enemies was taken care of, I turned toward the huge console that stood at the front of the War Room. I could easily enjoy controlling this room, I realized smugly. With a snap of my wrist, I let loose a slew of cables and infected the remaining binomes in the room.

With coils stretching from my hands to my slaves around the room, I set up a simple communications system. I checked that my voice could be heard all through the Principle Office's halls, and I spoke into the microphone.

"Attention. As you are no doubt aware, the Principle Office is now under my _complete_ control." How long had I waited to say those words! Even that one time I had nearly taken control of the Principle Office and drained Phong of his memory banks couldn't compare in the least to the sweet victory that was presented to me on a silver platter.

Right now I could imagine that my enemies had stopped in their running and were staring all around, forced to listen to every syllable I presented. "You're probably looking forward to one of my erudite speeches," I continued, relishing every thought-out word, "about me, Megaframe, the new viral dawn, et cetera et cetera." I waved a hand airily, though my core-com rose higher than it ever had at the situation.

"But I'm afraid I'm going to have to disappoint you," I went on, and I could just see Bob's eyebrows raise, Dot's eyes widen. "There is no grand scheme here."

I had tried for a grand scheme, to rebuild the city in my own image and under my total control. But the sprites had foiled my plan, and I was not stupid enough to try the same attack twice. My patience with these sprites had run out at the time it was announced that Bob had returned from the Web. I was thoroughly sick and tired of these sprites and all they had done to me.

"This is about _revenge_," I continued. And indeed it was. Oh, how I had held out for this, and I would make the sprites suffer. I slowly said, "Viruses are predatory by design. And it is time for me to follow my function." Did they realize yet? Did Bob know what I had in store for him, for all of them?

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Welman shuffle towards me, carrying a kicking Enzo. The boy would be the first of many slow deletions I would perform on those I hated most. 

"Prepare yourselves," I intoned, ". . . for the _hunt_!"

****

Author's Note: **Whew, this is the end! I had a great time delving into Megabyte's thoughts, and I found that my original idea turned into a great story that spanned for a month or so. Special thanks to all who reviewed on fanfiction.net and Mayhem's ReBoot message boards, especially Claire Hunter and Atlanta. Also, thanks to Slack for typing up transcripts of the Season 4 episodes on her website. It helped me to get through this final installment when I was having a bit of a block.**


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